Jotuns |
| Jotun might have meant “giant” The first living being was a Jotun called Ymir, from who the world was created. A Jotun was a giant with superhuman strength; their homeland was Jotunheim, which is one of the nine worlds. Jotunheim was a mostly made by mountains, wilderness and dense forests. The giants mostly lived from the fish in the water, and the animals from the dense forests, because there was no fertile land” |
Aegir: The Lord of the Sea |
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Aegir was one of the three jotuns who lived in Asgard, the two others are Loki and Karl. Aegir was married to his sister Ran, and was the father of nine daughters, the waves. Who is said to be the mothers of Heimdall. The names of Aegir’s nine daughters were Himminglaeva, Dufa, Blodughadda, Hefring, Ud, Hrönn, Bölge, Dröfn and Kolga. A few stories claim that Aegir was the brother of Loki and Karl. Aegir was one of the oldest gods, and predates the Aesir, Elves, Dwarfs, Giants and Vanir. His house is under the island of Hlesey “laesoe” or “cat’s throat”, in the coral caves. The island is between Jutland and Zealand in Denmark. He had two servants Eldir and Fimafeng. |
Annar: |
| Annar was the second husband of Nat "Night", their dauther was Fjorgyn “Earth”. |
Angrboda: |
| Angrboda is a jotun and lives in Jotunheim, “the land of the giants” in the hall of Angrboda. The name Angrboda means “the one who brings grief” or “She who offers sorrow” Angrboda was married to Loki, Angroboda and Loki where the parents to Hel, the Midgard serpent and the Fenrir wolf. |
Aud: |
| His name Aud means “Wealth” he is the son of Night “Nat” and Naglefari. |
Aurvandil: The Brave |
| Aurvandil was known as the brave. Aurvandil was the husband of Groa. Aurvandil was rescued by Thor from the giants and carried him across the icy river Elivagar in a basket. One of Aurvandil’s toes froze, and Thor broke it off and threw it into the sky, where it shone like a bright star Aurvandil’s toe. |
Baugi: Ring Shaped |
| Baugi was a giant and the brother of Suttung. Odin worked disguised as a worker named Bolverk for Baugi to gain the trust of him. Odin worked so well that Baugi agreed to lead him to the mountain where the Mead of poetry was hidden. It was guarded by Gunnlod, Suttung’s daughter. Baugi then drilled a hole in the mountain, to allow Odin a sip of the Mead. But Odin changed into a serpent and slithered thought the hole to get the mead. |
Beli: |
| Beili was the brother of Gerda, Freyr’s lover. Beli challenged Freyr, and Freyr killed him with a stag horn, because Freyr had given his magic sword to Gymir, Gerda’s father. |
Bergelmir: |
| His name Bergelmir means “Mountain yeller” or “Bear Yeller”. Bergelmir was a frost giant, and the son of Thrudgelmir and the grandson of Ymir, the first giant. Bergelmir and his wife were the only two survivors of all the giants after Ymir’s death and the flood. They used a hollowed out tree trunk to sail on the flood, it was the first boat. Because of Bergelmir and his wife, the race of frost giants and ogres were able to survive and live in Jotunheim. |
Bestla: |
| Bestla was a giant, and the wife of Borr. Bestla was the mother of the three gods, Odin, Vili and Ve. Bestla was the daughter of the giant Bolthur. |
Borr: |
| Borr was the son of Buri, who was the father of the gods. Borr was married to Bestla, the daughter of a giant. Borr and Bestla had three sons, Odin, Vili, and Ve. |
Bolthur: Thorn of Evil |
| Bolthur is the father of Bestla, and had a son which name is unknown. |
Byleist: |
| Byleirst is a jotun. He had a brother called Loki and Helblindi. Byleist was the son of Farbauti and Layfey. |
Day: |
| Day was the son of Night. The gods sent Night and Day up in the sky, in a chariot each, pulled by horses “Hrimfaxi” and “Skinfaxi”. |
Eggther: |
| Eggther was a watchman of the giants that at Ragnarok” The end of the world” would sit upon a grave mound and play his harp. |
Farbauti: |
| Farbauti means “cruel striker” He is a Jotun, he is married to Laufey, she is also a Jotun and they are the parents of Loki, Helblindi, Byleist. |
Fjolsvin: |
| Fjolsvin was the giant who guarded the gate in Jotunheim. |
Fornjot: Destroyer |
| Fornjot was a giant, and the father of the wind. |
Gang: |
| Gang was one of the storm giants, his father was Olvaldi and he had two brothers Thiazzi and Idi. His father Olvaldi had left Gang and his brother's piles of gold to be divided among them. |
Geirröd: |
Geirröd was one of Thor’s mightiest enemies. Geirröd was the father of Gjalp and Greip. Once Loki had taken the shape of a hawk and had been captured by Geirröd. The only way Loki would avoid death was to promise to bring Thor to Geirröd’s hall, without his power belt and Thor's hammer. Because Thor trusted Loki, he agreed to come to Geirröd’s hall, without his belt and the hammer Mjölnir. Fortunately for Thor, they made a brief stop by a giant named Grid, and she warned Thor about the plan while Loki was asleep. She loaned him, her own strength belt, magical iron gloves, and her scepter. Thor fully equipped, he and Loki traveled to Geirröd’s hall the next morning. When they arrived, Geirröd was not home, but they were met by the servant. But it was not long before Gjalp and Greip tried to kill Thor, by lifting his chair and smash his head against the ceiling. Thor used the wand to force the chair down, so it was instead Gjalp and Greip that was crushed underneath the chair. But then came Geirröd himself, and by using a tong, he picked up a red hot iron ball and threw it at Thor, Thor caught it with the gloves he had loaned from Grid. Furious at this behavior towards him, Thor threw the still burning, red-hot and steaming iron ball back through the hall, directly through an iron pillar, and deep into the belly of Geirröd. Geirröd and his two daughters Gjalp and Greip were dead, and Thor and Loki left the house, and returned to Asgard. |
Gerd: |
| Gerd was extremely beautiful. Gerd was the daughter of the giants Gymer and Aurbode. Freyr fell in love with her, but Gerd would not marry Freyr, but she was forced to do otherwise she would be cursed. |
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Giant master builder: |
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| The giant who build the walls around Asgard. He had a stallion named Svadilfari, which loki stole from him. So he could not make the walls of Asgard in the time frame he was supposed to. | ||
Gilling: |
| Gilling was a giant and the father of Suttung. Gilling was killed by the two dwafs Fjalar and Galar. |
Gjalp: Howler: |
| Gjalp was the daughter of the giant Geirrod, and sister of Greip. Gjalp tried to kill Thor, but Thor killed Gjalp and her sister. |
Grid: |
| Grid was a jotun and a friendly woman, Grid had a power belt, iron gloves and a magic wand. Her wand was called Gridavol. She was the mother of one of Odin's sons, the silent god VidarGrid made a special shoe, so Vidar could stand in Fenrir yawn. |
Groa: Growing |
| Groa had the knowledge of witchcraft and she was a Völva “Soothsayer”. Groa was married to Aurvandil the Brave and the mother of Svipdag. Svipdag visited Groa for advice in Niflheim after her death. Groa also tried to remove the whetstone that was in Thor's skull, after his fight with Hrungnir. Odin used sorcery to raise Groa from the grave, for a short amount of time. Groa then foretold Odin, the prophecy of Ragnarok. |
Gunlod: |
| Gunlod was the daughter of the fire giant Suttung. Gunlod was the woman that protected the Mead of poetry that was made from the blood of Kvasir. |
Gymir: |
| Gymir was a giant and the father of Gerd. |
| Anyone who died of illness or old age was sent to Hel. The entrance into Hel, was guarded by a dog named Garm “Hell Hound” He was bound in the Gnipahulen “Gnipacave” and would howl, as soon as new people would arrive. Nidhug (a dragon) would then notice that new blood was on the way. Nidhug would then suck the blood out of all the people who came, so they became completely pale. When all the blood had left them, were it easier for Hel, to get them into her army of the dead. The army would then attack, the humans in Midgard, when Ragnarok “the end of the world” came. Ragnarok would come the day, Hel were finished building her ship Naglfar. The ship was built with the nails from the dead. |
Helblindi: |
| Helblindi is a jotun. Helblindi means “Hel blinder or “All blind” He had a brother called Loki and Byleist. Helblindi was the son of Farbauti and Layfey. |
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Hrungnir: |
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| Hrungnir was large and stone headed, and the strongest of the giants, hrungnir had a heart and a skull of stone. Hrungnir had a whetstone as a weapon. Hrungnir had a horse named Goldfaxi “Golden Mane”, he bet the horse in a race against Odin which he lost. Hrungnir was killed in a duel with Thor. | ||
Hugi: Thought |
| Hugi was a young giant, who outran Thialfi in a running contest in Utgard. Hugi was an illusion and the embodiment of thought and no one can run faster than thought. |
Hymir: Dark One |
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| Hymir was a elder jotun a sea giant, who owned a large cauldron that the gods used to brew their mead. | ||
Hyndla: |
| Hyndla was a giant who was visted by the goddess Freya. Freya asked Hyndla to reveal the background of her human lover, Ottar. |
Idi: |
| Idi was one of the storm giants. Idi was the son of Olvaldi, and he had two brothers Thiazzi and Gang. |
Jarnsaxa: |
| Jarnsaxa had two sons, Magni and Modi with Thor. |
Laufey: |
| Laufey was married to Farbaute. Laufey and Farbaute are parents to Loki, Byleist, Helblindi. Loki was born after she was hit by a thunderbolt from Farbaute. |
Logi: Flame |
| Logi was a young giant who defeated the trickster Loki, in an eating contest, in the great hall in Utgard. It turned out that Logi was an illusion and the embodiment of fire, which can consume anything and everything with great speed. |
| Loki was quite beautiful; he was cunning and had cleverness. Loki was the god of wildfire and mischief. Loki lived in Asgard. Loki was evil at heart and very fickly by nature. It happened very often, that Loki would bring the Aesir in the uttermost embarrassments, and often Loki saved them with his cunning character. Loki was also a shape shifter and in separate incidents he appears in the form of a salmon, mare, seal, a fly, and possibly an elderly woman. |
Loki as Odin’s companion |
The Aesir can’t chase Loki away; he refers to his old right, by becoming blood brothers with Odin. Do you remember Odin, that we in primeval times mixed our blood. Beer in the cup, you would not have, before they had offered it to us both. |
Hel, Midgard Serpent, and the Fenrir Wolf. |
| When the Aesir were told, that these three siblings were born, in the land of the Jotuns, they knew this would bring great evil to the world. Not just because of their mother’s origin, but also their father. So Odin decided that a few, of the Aesir should go and get the children. When the children came to Asgard, Odin threw the Midgard serpent into the deep sea. The Midgard serpent grew so that is lies in the middle of the sea, all around the world, biting its own tail. Hel, he threw down in Niflheim, and gave her the power over nine worlds. So she could assign residence to all those who were sent to her. But it is only those who died of illness or old age. They kept the Fenrir wolf, in Asgard. | ![]() |
Menglod: |
| She was a very beautiful giantess, who had eigth maiden goddesses. |
Modgud: |
| She was a giantess, and the guardian of Gjallarbru, the bridge over the river Gioll, on the way to the Niflheim. Modgud allowed the newly dead to use the bridge to cross, if the soul stated his or her name and business. |
Naglfari: Darkling |
| Naglfari was a giant, and the first husband of Nat “Night”, they had a son named Aud. |
Nat: Night |
| Night was a beautiful giantess with dark skin and hair as the midnight black. She was the daughter of Narfi, one of the first giants. She was married three times, her first husband was Aud, her second husband was Annar, they had a daughter named Earth. Her third husband was Delling “Dawn”; they had a son named Dag “Day”. Nat and Dag were both given a chariot and put into the sky, to ride across the heaven. |
Norfi: |
| He was a giant and the father of Nat “Night”, he was one of the first giants in Jotunheim. |
Olvaldi: |
| He was the father of the storm giants, Thiazzi, Idi, and Gang. When Olvaldi died, he left a large amount of gold for his three sons. There was so much gold, that no scales could weight it, so the sons measured it by the mouthfuls. |
Ran: Robber |
| Ran was married to Aegir the lord of the sea. Ran lived in the coral caves under the island of Hlesey “laesoe” or “cat’s throat”. The island is between Jutland and Zealand in Denmark. Her coral caves were only lighten up by the gleam of her gold. She dragged drowning sailors who had any gold down to her coral caves, in her fishing net. |
Rind: |
| Rind was the daugther of Billing”King of the Ruthenians”. Rind and Odin had a son named Vali. |
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Skrymir: Master of Illusions |
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| Skrymir was a very large giant, and Skrymir was the strongest and most cunning of the giants. Skrymir lived in Utgard. Skrymir was also known as Udgard/Utgard Loki. | ||
Suttung: Heavy with broth |
| Suttung was a giant, and the son of Gilling. His father was killed by two dwarfs, Fjalar and Galar. Suttung had a daughter named Gunlod, she was the guardian of the Mead of poetry. |
Thiazzi: |
| Thiazzi was a mighty storm giant that lived in a house called Thrymheim, “Noisy home” it was in Jotunheim. He was the son of the giant Olvaldi, and the brother of Gang, and Idi. Thiazzi had a son named Skadi. Occasionally Thiazzi cloaked himself as an eagle, he also did this once to trick, Loki into helping him kidnap Idun, the goddess in charge of the apples of youth. In the end Loki tricked the giant Thiazzi, and he was killed at the gates in Asgard. Skadi the daughter of Thiazzi, was given to the Vanir god Njord, as a compensation for her father's death. After the death of Thiazzi, Odin threw the eyes of Thiazzi into the sky, so they would stay there forever as lighting stars. |
Thokk: Coal |
| She was the giantess who refused to cry for the death of Balder, so he would remain in Hel, until Ragnarok. Some belive that Thokk might have been Loki, in disguise. |
Thrym: |
| He was a frost giant, and sometimes called king of the frost giants. He once stole Thor's hammer and demanded the goddess Freya for his wife, to give the hammer back. The trickster Loki helped Thor get his hammer back, and Thor killed Thrym wih the hammer Mjölnir. |
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